The Terrible Tooth

Like many adults I am afraid of the dentist. But unlike most I am terrified of the dentist, but at least I admit to it. Don't get me wrong, I'm not a coward who faints at the site of blood. In fact, I like to consider myself as fairly tough. I have survived two knee replacements and one hip replacement surgeries, numerous dirt bike crashes, job site accidents, including one where I tore my lower leg open on a water pipe. It was just like in anatomy textbook, I could see the bones, muscles and yellow blobs that turned out to be fat. YUCK. That time I simply put the flap back, taped my leg closed with duct tape (there is a use that's not on the label), cleaned my tools and then drove back to Glendora fron Northridge. And not one but two bouts with MRSA. The round MRSA scar is on my side, I show it to people and tell them it is a mistake to teach your woman to shoot. They get all wide eyed and ask if she shot me, i just smile and say yea but she missed, that's from a infection. So far everyone has laffed. I have a lot of scars and a story to go with every one. Some have more than one story, the truth and the one that's fun to tell and I hope fun to hear.
Having a wife, two daughters and enough school loans to pay for a very nice car, money is tight at my house. But a abscessed tooth is a perfect way to get a infection in a prosthetic joint which could cost me one of my new knees, hip, a leg or even my life. So when I first noticed a pain in my tooth in December I naturally figured (hoped) it was refered pain from the tooth opposite, which had a large cavity. The dentist soon assured me that not only do I have a huge cavity but a infected root-canal in the tooth opposite. I had a root-canal redone a few years ago, it cost $400, hurt like hell and lasted less than a year. I like walking around even more than chewing so I opted to have the offending tooth pulled. Sure said the dentist, it will cost $700. After I got up off the floor I explained to him what he could kiss for $700. My mother-in-law and wife go to a dentist in Mexico, I know what your thinking, I thought the same way. So I went with them to show them what a mistake it was to go to a third world country for dental work. I went in there like Lee Strobel (The Case For Christ) would go into a church, I used to be a nurse so I looked at their techniques, autoclave, diplomas, asked a lot of loaded questions and finally became a convert. This particular dentist was not only very professional but incredibly gentle and patient with my phobia. Needless to day now I'm a regular patient. It is a long drive but if I can get the mother-in-law to drive...not so bad.
Because I was afraid, needed a passport and simply did not have the time I waited from December to July to get things fixed. When I said the first infected root canal hurt like hell I was lying. This hurt like HELL, the other was a stubbed toe. After 3 hours, a gallon of anaesthetic and lots of reassuring words and distracting stories it was still killing me and would not come out! Finally I took hold of the armrests and assured my 5 foot 6 inch dentist there would be no repercussions from his 6 foot 7 inch patient, just do it. And he did. I swear that tooth had roots like mammoth tusks.
The moral of the blog is of course not to let things go no matter how scary and more importantly, do not judge a book by its cover. Or a dentist by the city he practices in.
If anyone is interested my dentist's E-mail is DrSolorio@ DrSolorio.com